I've spent a great deal of time listening the Avett Brothers, the Yonder Mountain String Band, Old Crow Medicine Show and other newgrass and alt-folk acts in recent weeks. There was a time when I would have considered such deviations from traditional bluegrass heretical. No more. As someone once croaked, "I was so much older then- I'm younger than that now." So when I hear "real" bluegrass today- and the Steep Canyon Rangers' new release Nobody Knows You qualifies as a traditional bluegrass album- I'm initially inclined to get excited only by unconventional production tricks on songs like Nobody Knows You's "Between Midnight and the Dawn." After a few spins, however, the songs steeped in tradition became my favorites. I also appreciate that a couple of the love songs are written by a guy who clearly understands the complexities of relationships. Bonus- there's no sign of a certain comedian.
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God bless Public Enemy. Check out "I Shall Not Be Moved".
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I've given Frank Ocean's Channel Orange a cursory listen. It struck me as a less obnoxious version of Rhymes-with-Snake's Take Care. I'll try it again when I'm in the proper frame of mind.
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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.
(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)
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